Burglar alarm



Oct. 21, 1941. c. P. HULST BURGLAR ALARM Filed Jan. 4, 1939 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 14 I j 25 J19,

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I H INVENTOR 25 1| 1M! 01/ ggrmreffialri M ATTORNEY c. P. HULST 2,259,696

BURGLAR ALARM Filed Jan. 4, 19:59 2 sheets-shed 2 INVENTOR Y f/ ammf/MM? ATTORNEY Patented Oct. 21, 1941 I QUNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE BURGLAR ALARM Clarence P. Hulst, New York, N. Y.

Application January 4, 1939, Serial N 0. 249,224 5 Claims. (01. 177-314) The present invention relates to signaling devices and more particularly to burglar alarms and the like.

I Burglaries are forerunners. of thefts, murders, kidnapings, brutalassaults and similar crimes. Frequently persons after entering a house for even'petty thievery will. render the occupant or occupants. unconscious by a blow on the head in order to effect a safe escape. Most peaceful citi- Zens today are particularly concerned about the possible bodily harm and injury inflicted by the thief in an eiiort to force a person to tell where valuables are or to prevent any alarm after the thief leaves.

So great is the fear of forcible entries in houses, apartments, hotel rooms and the like that all sorts of locks are provided to prevent them, but few locks are safe and these are quite expensive and troublesome. A jimmy will pry open almost any door or window. In other cases, the lock of the door or the Window may be reached merely by breaking or removing a small pane of glass which experienced criminals can do without substantial noise. It is a well known fact that any unusual noise, a light or other disturbances will frighten a burglar away. Various devices have been devised for giving signals when doors or windows are opened. Numerous patents have been granted by the Patent Oflice on such devices. Thus far, however, the commercial market does not have an inexpensive compact device which has found its way into the average home. The devices known heretofore have not been satisfactory for such purposes and have been too expensive to be adopted generally.

The present invention aims to overcome the above difiiculties, and to fill the need which has existed formany years for'an inexpensive burglar alarm which may be utilized in the average home and which may be carried by a traveller for use inhotel rooms and other places where he stops. The. invention further contemplates. providing a device of such simplicity that it can be sold at a low price and be'adopted by the public generally.

The utility of the device is further increased by its adaptation to be used as alantern or flashlight in addition to being a burglar alarm. Its effectiveness as an alarm is enhanced by reason of the fact that it gives both visible and audible alarms when operated and both the visible and audible alarms continue even if the door or window, improperly opened, is closed, thus assuring that. the thief will not stay long enough to investigate the cause of the noise.

An object of the present invention is to provide an inexpensive burglar alarm which is effective in its operation and which is easily operated without complicated attachments.

Another object of the invention is to provide a burglar alarm whichmay be utilized as a lantern or flashlight.

'Another object of the invention is to provide a self-contained unit of sufficiently light weight to be carried by travellers and used in hotels and other places without marring the furniture or parts of the building.

Another object of the invention is to provide a device which may be adjusted so that when operated' a beam of light will be flashed into' the intruders face.

Another object of the invention is to provide an alarm which is operated by the device being toppled over or upset when a door or window is opened.

Other and further objects of the invention will be obvious upon an understanding of the illustrative embodiment about to be described, or will be indicated in the appended claims, and various advantages not-referred to herein will occur to a one skilled in the art upon employment of the invention in practice.

A. preferred embodiment of the invention has been chosen for purposes of illustration and description and is shown in the accompanying drawings, forming a part of the specification,

wherein.

Fig. 1 is a perspective View illustrating the signaling device positioned in front of a door to be overturned and operated when the door is opened;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view through the device;

Fig. 3 is an elevational view showing the back of the device and particularlythe switch mechanism;

Fig. 4 is a diagrammatic view illustrating the switching mechanism along the line 44 of Fig. 3

and the electrical connections therefor; and

Fig. 5 'is a view illustrating the alarm attached to a window to be operated if the window is i opened.

which the light may pass from the visible signal 4.

The audible signal 2 is preferably a bell or buzzer having electrical terminals I! and I2 and is shown mounted on the casing by suitable screws H] but it will be understood that it may be mounted within the casing if desired.

The visible signal 4 preferably comprises a light l4 and a reflector l5. The reflector is preferably pivotally mounted so that it may be adjusted to any desired position whereby light may be focused on the intruder when the device is toppled over. For this purpose a base member 23 is secured to the back of the box by screws IS. A ball member I! is threaded or otherwise attached to the base member and a cup shaped member I8 is threaded to a sleeve [9 attached to the reflector I5. A spring 20 is effective to permit adjustment of the reflector and resiliently holds it in adjusted position.

While any suitable source of current may be utilized, a battery is mounted in the housing and held in position by a clamping member 2| secured to the housing by a screw or rivet 22;

One pole 24 of the battery is connected to the terminal l2 of the buzzer or bell 2 by wire I211. The current passes through the buzzer to the terminal H and through wire Ha, terminal llb to the contact point lie of switch 6. When the leaf spring 26 is pressed against the contact point No, current passes to the terminal 25 of the battery 5 through wire 260. which connects with the leaf spring 26 through terminal 261) shown in Fig. 3 (not shown in Fig. 2)

Current for operating the light l4 passes from the terminal 24 of the battery through lead Ma to the base of the lamp M. The other'side of the lamp is grounded through the base support.

for the reflector to the terminal Nb and extension 28 attached thereto. When the leaf spring 25 is pressed sufficiently hard to force the contact point He against the terminal l lb, the leaf spring 26 will be connected to the opposite side of the light and complete the circuit therethrough by wire 26a. and pole 25 of the battery.

Referring more particularly to Figs. 2, 3 and 4, it will be noted that the leaf spring 26, when forced down, closes the contacts He and Nb and operates both the light and audible signal. The simplified wiring diagram in Fig. 4 is easier to follow than the actual wiring described above in connection with Fig. 2. It is also to be noted that the leaf spring 26 may, instead of being pressed down as shown in Fig. 2, be forced under the extension 28 so as to connect it to the contact Mb (see dotted line position of spring 26 in Fig. 4) so that the current will pass through the light only and not through the buzzer. When thus connected, the device is adapted to be used as a lamp or as a flashlight. Also the leaf spring 25 may be turned to its downward position as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 3 and connected under screw head 29 so that the leaf spring is in ineffective position suitable for transportation and the like.

To facilitate carrying the device and to facilitate the operation of the device as a burglar alarm, a bail member 30 is attached to the upper end of the devicewith positioning members 3| adapted to hold the bail either in upright position or in a position at right angles to the normal position of the device as shown in Fig. 1. With the bail in upright position as, shown in Fig. 3, the device is adapted to be readily carried and used as a lantern or flashlight. When the bail is in horizontal position as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, it is adapted to be placed adjacent a door 32 with the bail in engagement with the door. When the door is opened, pressure is applied through the bail to the upper end of the sig naling device, which causes it to topple over as shownin dotted lines in Fig. 1. When thus toppled over, the switch 6 is closed, since the leaf spring 26 will engage the floor and will be forced by the weight of the device into contact with the terminal I la and will force the terminal I I0 into contact with the terminal Mb which closes the circuit from the battery through both the lamp I4 and the audible signal device 2. In this way,

the alarm is given and the thief or burglar frightenedaway. The mechanism as thus positioned is suitable for doors opening into the room. ,Where the door opens outwardly, the

then connected by black thread or cord to the sash of the window by means of a thumb tackJ When the window is raised, the spool is pulled by the thread from under the box, which will then rest on the side where the leaf spring is mounted and the alarm will be set off. In'all cases, it will be noted that the alarm continues to ring even after the thief has been frightened away and until someone in the house is awakened and returns the device to its normal position.

While the leaf type of switch is shown and described herein to effect operation of the de-' vice, it is to be understood that various other types of switches may be utilized for a similar purpose without departing from the inventive concepts contained herein.

It will be seen that the'present device is simple I in construction and effective in operation. The 'alarm, once set into operation, continues to operate even if the door or window is 'closed again. The device is portable and may be readily set up without detailed instructions. Several adjoining windows may, if desired, be connected to the same spool and thus a single device may protect more than one window. However, it is preferable to have a separate alarm device for:

each door and for each window that the occupant desires to protect. The device is of simple and rugged construction and fully capable of withstanding any rough usage to which it may be subjected. In addition to being a burglar alarm,

it may be used as a lantern or flashlight with ease. I

As various changes may be made in the form,

construction and arrangement of the parts herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention and without sacrificing any of its advantages, it is to be understood that all matter herein is to be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. In a device of the class described, the combination of a housing having a base portion at its lower part and adapted to be normally maintained in upright position on the base thereof, an electrically operated light at one side of said housing, an electrically operated audible signal, means for connecting the light only to a source of current whereby the device may be used as a lantern, and means mounted on the side of said housing oppositely disposed to said electrically operated light for automatically connecting both the light and the signal to a source of power when the device is toppled over and caused to lie on the side thereof on which said latter means is mounted.

2. In a device of the class described which is set into operation by movement of and the weight of the device itself, the combination of a housing having a base portion at its lower part and adapted to be normally maintained in upright position on the base thereof, an electric light associated with said housing at one side thereof, an electrically operated audible signaling device also associated with said housing, a switch mounted on the side of said housing oppositely disposed to said electric light and connected to one side of said audible signaling de vice and to one side of said light respectively, and a leaf spring mounted on the same side of said housing as said switch and operatively connected to the other side of said light and to the other side of said audible signaling device, said leaf spring being adapted to close said switch when the housing is toppled over on the side on which the leaf spring is mounted.

3. In a burglar alarm, the combination of a housing, electrical signaling means mounted on said housing, a battery within said housing, a switch mounted on one side of said housing, means including the switch for connecting said signaling means to said battery, and means secured to said housing adapted to close said switch to operate said electrical signaling means when said device is toppled over on said switch,

and a movable bail mounted on said device adjacent the upper part thereof for carrying the same and adapted to be fixed in a position substantially at right angles to the normal position of said device so that the device may be placed beside a door and the door, when opened, will engage said bail to tilt said device about the lower part thereof and topple it over and operate said signal, and means on said housing for maintaining the bail in either said carrying or said right angle position.

4. In a burglar alarm, the combination of a housing having an opening therein, an electric light in said housing adjacent said opening, a buzzer attached to said housing, a battery with in said housing, a switch mounted on a side of said housing oppositely disposed to said opening, means including the switch for connecting said electric light and said buzzer to said battery, and means secured to said housing adapted to close said switch to operate said light and buzzer when said device is toppled over on said switch, and a bail mounted on said device for carrying the same and adapted to be fixed in a position substantially at right angles to the normal position of said device so that the device may be placed beside a door and the door, when opened, will engage said bail to tilt said device so that it will topple said device over and operate said buzzer and cause said light to direct a beam through the opening in said housing, and means on said housing for maintaining said right angle position of the bail.

5. A burglar alarm of the type normally maintained in inoperative upright position on a base located at the normally lowermost part thereof and adapted to be put into operation by toppling over on a side thereof, said burglar alarm comprising the combination of a housing, an electrically operating ignaling mechanism, an electric circuit for operating said signaling mechanism, means mounted at the normally upright side of said housing upon which said burglar alarm is adapted to be toppled and said means being adapted to be operated by the weight of the burglar alarm when in toppled position to actuate the signaling mechanism, a bail member secured to said housing adapted to facilitate toppling thereof, and means adapted to maintain said bail in position for toppling said housing.

CLARENCE P. I-IULST. 

